Displaying items by tag: Roaring Twenties

Broadway In Chicago is excited to announce that the smash hit Broadway musical and global sensation, THE GREAT GATSBY, based on the beloved novel by F. Scott Fitzgerald , is now playing at Broadway In Chicago’s Cadillac Palace Theatre (151 W. Randolph St.). The party to end all parties will be here for a limited two-week engagement through May 3 only.

Set in the Roaring Twenties, the story follows eccentric and mysterious millionaire Jay Gatsby, who will stop at nothing in the pursuit of the lost love of his youth, Daisy Buchanan. Through its fascinatingly nuanced characters – driven by complex inner lives, erupting with extravagance and longing – this epic tale has always been destined to sing. Now, it comes to life across North American stages, with a grand, Tony Award-winning production design befitting the 21^st century.

Through an electrifying jazz and pop-infused score, the epic story has landed on the Broadway musical stage for the first time ever, transporting sold-out audiences to an “extravaganza that explodes with life and energy” (Entertainment Weekly). THE GREAT GATSBY is winner of the 2024 Tony Award® for Best Costume Design, winner of the 2024 Broadway.com Audience Choice Award for Favorite New Musical, and winner of nine top awards for BroadwayWorld’s 2024 Theater Fan's Choice awards, including Best Musical.

“This production is a big, bold, Broadway version of The Great Gatsby. It’s thrilling to see these indelible characters and iconic moments from the novel come to life on stage.  This stage production, which honors the novel and its history while also speaking clearly to today’s audiences, is a terrific new iteration of this classic work.”  - The Estate of F. Scott Fitzgerald

THE GREAT GATSBY features music & lyrics by Tony Award nominees Jason Howland (Beautiful: The Carole King Musical, Little Women) and Nathan Tysen (Paradise Square), a book by Jonathan Larson Grant winner Kait Kerrigan (The Mad Ones), and is staged by award-winning director Marc Bruni (Beautiful: The Carole King Musical) and choreographer Dominique Kelley (“Mariah’s Magical Christmas Special”, “Dancing with the Stars”). 

THE GREAT GATSBY features Drama Desk Award-winning scenic & projection design by Paul Tate dePoo III (Spamalot, Tommy at The Kennedy Center), Tony Award-winning costume design by Linda Cho (Anastasia, A Gentleman’s Guide...), sound design by Tony Award winner Brian Ronan (Beautiful, The Book of Mormon), lighting design by Cory Pattak (Spamalot), and hair & wig design by Drama Desk Award winner Charles G. LaPointe (The Cher Show, Spongebob Squarepants) & Rachael Geier . Arrangements and Music Supervision are by Jason Howland, Orchestrations are by Jason Howland and Kim Scharnberg (Jekyll & Hyde), and casting is by Stephen Kopel and Jillian Cimini at C12 Casting (Gutenberg, & Juliet).

The Broadway production of THE GREAT GATSBY began previews at The Broadway Theatre on Friday, March 29, 2024, and opened on Thursday, April 25, 2024, where it continues to thrill audiences and break box office records. The Broadway production followed a record-breaking world-premiere engagement at Paper Mill Playhouse, where it was the highest grossing show in that organization’s history.

THE GREAT GATSBY made its West End debut at the London Coliseum, which began previews on April 11, 2025, officially opened on April 24, and closed on September 7. The successful Seoul production recently finished its residency at the GS Arts Center in the Gangnam District of Seoul.

One of the most popular novels of all time, The Great Gatsby is a New York Times and USA Today perennial best seller. It has sold over 30 million copies worldwide since its release in 1925 and continues to sell over 500,000 per year. The novel has been translated into over 42 different languages, and has been adapted into television shows, radio plays, video games, and multiple films – including the blockbuster Baz Luhrmann feature film starring Leonardo DiCaprio.

The North American tour of THE GREAT GATSBY is produced by Chunsoo Shin, OD Company and NETworks Presentations.  Mark Shacket and Trinity Wheeler serve as Executive Producers for the production.  Worldwide management for THE GREAT GATSBY is handled by Foresight Theatrical.

Bios

CHUNSOO SHIN (Producer) Acclaimed Korean theatre producer, Chunsoo Shin is a 5-time winner of Korea's most prestigious theatrical award and the founder and president of OD Company, a world class theatrical production company in South Korea. Chunsoo Shin was the first musical producer to be awarded the Korean Pop Culture and Arts Prime Minister Award, Korea's most prestigious prize for popular culture and arts awarded by the government. As the first Korean producer to become a lead producer on Broadway, he has contributed in broadening the pathway for Korean producers’ international expansion throughout his producing career. Broadway:  Doctor Zhivago, Holler If Ya Hear Me. Korea: Sweeney Todd, Man of La Mancha, Jekyll & Hyde, Dreamgirls, Titanic, The Story of My Life. In development: The Lights in Firenze, Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots (La Jolla).

OD COMPANY (Producer) is a world class global theater producing company of South Korea. Theatrical credits include: Jekyll & Hyde, Dracula, Death Note, Grease, Doctor Zhivago, Il Tenore, Titanic, Dream Girls, Holler if Ya Hear Me, Sweeny Todd, Man of La Mancha, The Story of My Life . OD Company’s production are highly acclaimed by both critics and audiences for its matchless excellence of production quality. With passion and endeavor, OD Company aims to bring the most exciting theatrical experiences, and create a channel of communication between the audience and performance art. More information at ODMusical.com

NETWORKS PRESENTATIONS (Producer) is an industry-leading producer of touring theatrical productions, committed to delivering quality entertainment to audiences worldwide for more than 25 years. Current and upcoming productions include A Beautiful Noise, Beetlejuice, The Book of Mormon, Boop! The Musical,  Buena Vista Social Club, The Great Gatsby, Jersey Boys, Les Misérables, Mark Twain Tonight!,  Cameron Mackintosh presents Andrew Lloyd Webber’s The Phantom of the Opera, The Sound of Music, Water for Elephants and The Wiz.

MARK SHACKET (Executive Producer) is a partner at Foresight Theatrical, one of the leading general management firms on Broadway.  Mark is Executive Producer for The Great Gatsby on Broadway and the West End.  He recently managed Funny Girl with Lea Michele and New York, New York on Broadway, and served as Executive Producer for Slave Play , receiving his first Tony Award nomination, and POTUS: Or, Behind Every Dumbass Are Seven Women Keeping Him Alive.  Mark serves on the board of Broadway Cares and has raised over $2.5 million for the charity through the poker event he co-founded, Broadway Bets. 

TRINITY WHEELER (Executive Producer) has been with NETworks Presentations for over 20 years. Broadway: 1776 (dirs. Diane Paulus and Jeffrey Page), Les Misérables. National tours: The Great Gatsby, The Sound of Music (dir. Jack O’Brien), 1776, Les Misérables, Peter Pan (dir. Lonny Price), A Beautiful Noise, Hairspray, Once on This Island, Waitress, The SpongeBob Musical, Chicago, Finding Neverland, Dirty Dancing, Bullets Over Broadway, Elf the Musical, Disney’s Beauty and the Beast, The Royal National Theatre production of Oklahoma!, The Wedding Singer, The Producers, The Wizard of Oz, The Phantom of the Opera, Mary Poppins, Young Frankenstein (dir. Susan Stroman) and Rent starring Adam Pascal and Anthony Rapp.

For more information, visit https://broadwaygatsby.com/
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PERFORMANCE SCHEDULE
Tuesday, April 21 – 7:00 p.m.
Wednesday, April 22 – 7:00 p.m.
Thursday, April 23 – 7:00 p.m.
Friday, April 24 – 7:00 p.m.
Saturday, April 25 – 2:00 p.m. & 7:30 p.m.
Sunday, April 26 – 1:00 p.m. & 6:30 p.m.

Tuesday, April 28 – 7:00 p.m.
Wednesday, April 29 – 1:00 p.m. & 7:00 p.m.
Thursday, April 30 – 7:00 p.m.
Friday, May 1 – 7:00 p.m.
Saturday, May 2 – 2:00 p.m. & 7:30 p.m.
Sunday, May 3 – 1:00 p.m.

 
TICKET INFORMATION (As of April 21, based on availability and subject to change)
Individual tickets for THE GREAT GATSBY are on sale now and range from $49.00 - $165.00 with a select number of premium tickets available. Ticket price listed is when purchased in person at the box office. Additional fees apply for online purchases. Patrons can also participate in a digital lottery for a chance to purchase $30.00 tickets for each performance, which is inclusive of all mandatory taxes, restoration, handling, and third-party fees. In addition to the lottery, a limited number of day-of-show, in-person Rush tickets will be available for $49.00 for all performances. Click here for more info on Digital Lottery and In-Person Rush. Tickets are available now for groups of 10 or more by calling Broadway In Chicago Group Sales at (312) 977-1710 or emailing This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. For more information, visit www.broadwayinchicago.com.

 
ABOUT BROADWAY IN CHICAGO
Broadway In Chicago was created in July 2000 and over the past 26 years has grown to be one of the largest commercial touring homes in the country. A Nederlander Presentation, Broadway In Chicago lights up the Chicago Theater District entertaining up to 1.7 million people annually in five theatres. Broadway In Chicago presents a full range of entertainment, including musicals and plays, on the stages of five of the finest theatres in Chicago’s Loop including the  Cadillac Palace Theatre, CIBC Theatre, James M. Nederlander Theatre, The Auditorium, and just off the Magnificent Mile, the Broadway  Playhouse at Water Tower Place.

For more information and tickets, visit www.BroadwayInChicago.com.
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It’s been quite some time since “Chicago” has actually been performed in Chicago (or thereabouts), but after a ten-year road in obtaining the show’s rights, Drury Lane Theatre in Oakbrook brings home the popular musical created in 1975 – and we are glad they did. With music by John Kander, lyrics by Fred Webb and a book by both Webb and super choreographer Bob Fosse, the musical “Chicago” is based on a 1926 play of the same name. Inspired by actual criminals and crimes reported by reporter Maurine Dallas Watkins, the story revolves around the notion of the “celebrity criminal” while mocking the Chicago justice system that was in place in the 1920’s, an era where it was also widely suspected that an attractive women could not be convicted of a heinous crime, like say, the murder of her lover or husband. 

In “Chicago” the story starts off with a “bang” when Roxie Hart (Kelly Felthous) shoots dead her lover on the side. She is quickly arrested and held in Cook County Jail while awaiting trial for murder. In an age when the press sensationalized homicides committed by women (good ol' media), the public quickly buys into the hype making an instant celebrity out of Roxie, and as starved for stardom as the former dancer has always been, she thrives on the new-found attention. In the “pen” Roxie meets several colorful characters, but none as tough as Velma Kelly (Alena Watters), a socialite divorcee and former cabaret singer who is currently the talk of Chicago for the high-profile murder she committed. Velma barely gives Roxie the time of day, instead giving her the cold shoulder. But when Roxie’s popularity soars as the “new story” and Velma’s diminishes, it’s Velma who wants to partner with Roxie for a song and dance nightclub act, this time receiving the cold shoulder from the new celebrity. 

Roxie’s only way to avoid a sentence of death by hanging is to hire the flashy, fast-talking lawyer, Billy Flynn (Guy Lockard) for five thousand dollars. Well beyond what the couple can afford, Roxie’s doting, naive and “invisible” husband Amos (Justin Brill) scrapes up what he can and promises Flynn to pay the rest when he can. From there, Flynn turns the case into a dog and pony show, equating the trial as a “three-ring circus”.  

Watters stuns on several occasions as sassy Velma Kelly, winning the audience over almost immediately after a dazzling performance of the musical’s opening number “All That Jazz”. Possessing just the right dose of sexy attitude, Kelly impresses both vocally and in her dancing, her performance nothing short of riveting. As notable as Watters’ portrayal of Velma Kelly, Felthous also knocks the ball out of the park as Roxie Hart, pairing perfectly with her fellow caged dame and giving the show a rock ‘em sock ‘em one-two punch. Felthous convinces as one stricken by delusions of grandeur, confusing the popularity of her murder case as celebrity fame, putting forth an overall display of well-tuned comedic timing to go along with her own vocal prowess and dance ability. As fun to watch as the two are, Watters and Felthous really bring it home in their physically-charged routine “Nowadays”. 

He’s charming, good-looking and possesses a silver tongue that can sway even the toughest juries. Well-cast, singer/songwriter Guy Lockard brightly shines as the smooth defense attorney, Billy Flynn, and gives the show yet another boost, particularly in his courtroom maneuvering melody “Razzle Dazzle”. Justin Brill also contributes nicely in his funny depiction of Amos Hart, a man who is considered so undistinguishable by others he aptly refers to himself as “Mister Cellophane” in one of the show’s most humorous numbers. E. Faye Butler’s strong interpretation of Matron Mama Morton is pivotal, Butler crushing it in the number “When You’re Good to Mama”, a jailhouse tutorial for newly imprisoned Roxie Hart. A talented ensemble also brings another strength to the production in their many alluring dance numbers, perhaps most markedly in “Cell Block Tango”, a sultry ode to the woman prisoner during the revolutionary Jazz age.  

This new staging of “Chicago” is colorful and richer than ever thanks to an artistic creative team that includes Kevin Depinet (Scenic Design), Sully Ratke (Costume Design), Lee Fiskness (Lighting Design), Ray Nardelli (Sound Design), Cassy Schillo (Properties Design), Claire Moores (Wig Design) along with Production Stage Manager Larry Baker. 

“Chicago” is an energy-driven musical that is sexy, fun and truly memorable. Filled with a slew outstanding performances, inventive choreography and a set list that is justly contagious, Drury Lane’s “Chicago” is a can’t miss thrill ride. 

The Roaring Twenties are back...in high style. 

“Chicago” is currently being performed at Drury Lane Theatre in Oakbrook through June 18th. For tickets and/or more show information, click here.